


Arrival

by Legume_Shadow



Series: Whispers (Prequels to the Echoes Series) [10]
Category: Peacemaker Kurogane, Rurouni Kenshin
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Descent Into Darkness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-08
Updated: 2015-02-08
Packaged: 2018-03-11 00:49:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 10,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3309527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Legume_Shadow/pseuds/Legume_Shadow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One week into the Roshigumi's arrival into Kyoto and already there are signs that not everything is going well as Saitou joins them.  Far and away from the chaos that has gripped the ancient city, Kenshin finally arrives and proves his skills with the sword in Takasugi's Kiheitai.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> First Publishing: AO3, February 2015. All copyrights apply to the appropriate parties and no profit is being made from this fanwork.

**Part 9: Arrival**

**Chapter 9.0**

_February 1863_

 

Despite the layers of clothing he wore, it was still chilly enough that he shivered slightly as he and the others waited for the last of their little group, Toudou to finish getting dressed. Rubbing his hands together to try to get some warmth in them, Okita then raised them to his mouth and blew on them, hoping that it would help retain some of the warmth. He was not the only person in their little group to try to warm themselves up. Edo's winters were colder than this, but it seemed that no matter where one went, even if it was further south, the snow-covered ground still made things cold.

“Hey, Heisuke!” Nagakura yelled, “Hurry up! We're freezing our butts off here! If you don't come out when I reach five, we're leaving you behind! One...two...”

The partition to where Toudou had disappeared off to slid open with a loud clack and the fresh-faced man appeared, stepping out of the room as he slid the door closed and hopped down to the ground, ready to go. Toudou merely gave a cheeky grin at all of them as Okita saw Nagakura shake his head in exasperation while Harada looked ready to knock a few punches into Toudou for his lateness. He couldn't help but chuckle at the scene before him – the Trio and their antics never ceased to amuse him.

“All right, lets go!” Nagakura enthusiastically said, as the little group set off, determined to enjoy a night of revelry in Kyoto's famous Shimabara district.

It had been only a week since the Roshigumi had arrived and settled in the outskirts of Kyoto. Mibu Village, was the area that they had been granted quarters, but in the week that they had arrived, there had been numerous incidents, both with the locals, other groups who patrolled Kyoto, and with scattered groups of rowdy ronin.

It was the latter two that Okita had been most involved in, but according to Kondou and Hijikata, Serizawa had been the one to instigate the unfortunate incident with the locals. It had been Serizawa and two others that Okita did not know to well, that had been involved in the incident, and only Hijikata and Kondou had responded when another local had stopped by the Roshigumi headquarters to alert others. All five involved were silent on what had just happened, but Okita had heard the negative rumors run rampant. That incident with the locals, coupled with the incident with a local patrol group, had putting the Roshigumi's reputation as a peacekeeping group in jeopardy.

Now though, just one week into their mission, it seemed that Serizawa had opted for something of a peace offering, inviting a few members of the group out tonight for a night in Shimabara. The invite had come from Nagakura, who said that Serizawa wanted to get to know the other members of the Roshigumi that were not a part of his group better. Those not on patrol tonight were to meet him in Shimabara, and curious, Okita decided to go.

The small group's stroll through the city, taking in the sights of this boisterous part of Kyoto at night, even though there were still patches of snow on the ground, was quick, but not in a hurry. Okita could feel himself warming up enough that the chill was warded and as they crossed the threshold of the city and into the district of Shimabara, the numerous amounts of colorful lanterns, along with the the sheer amount of people in this area overwhelmed them. He personally thought that Edo's Yoshiwara district had almost nothing compared to Kyoto's offering. Even though Edo's district was summarily larger than Kyoto's district, perhaps it was the sheer amount of color, or the different accents, from the spirited, fun-loving Osaka accent, to the soft-spoken Kyoto accent and everything in between – it just felt livelier to him.

He was not the only person to gape at the colorful buildings, decorated with exquisitely beautiful women on balconies, calling for patrons into their dens. How on earth could one navigate this entire district and not turn right into the first few flower houses was almost mind boggling. Fortunately, with Nagakura leading them, the group continued towards the heart of the district.

At long last, after much shuffling down the streets, they finally stopped in front of a modest-looking den. The outside of it was decorated, but not ostentatiously or opulently as its neighbors. There were two enormously muscled men standing outside, and Nagakura gestured for them to enter, ignoring the shifty eyes that the bouncers were giving them.

Leaving their shoes at the entrance, the group were led up stairs by a comely-looking woman who had introduced herself as the matron of this particular house. Serizawa was already in the room when they entered, and Okita immediately felt the atmosphere change into a slightly tense one, with the unease mainly coming from a couple of the people in the group. However, that tension was broken by the Trio's exclamations of the lovely ladies entering from the other side of the room, bringing in sake and food. The group seated themselves around the room as the enjoyable night got underway.

* * *

_A few hours later..._

 

Serizawa had certainly spared no expense, for each person in the room had a lovely young woman attending to them. The beautiful young woman who had been at his side for the greater part of the night, Azami, was currently fetching some more sake and food for them. Two other women had gone with her to help. Though he had engaged in light conversations with Azami throughout the party, he had avoided looking at her too much. It was mostly due to the lighting of room; she looked similar to a person whom he had found suddenly missing.

He shook his head slightly, trying to release the furtive notion from his mind; he could never think about that particular person in that fashion – it was unbecoming of him. Fortunately, Nagakura's laughter snapped him out of his thoughts as he looked up, taking a sip out of his sake cup, to see that Harada had the shorter man in a light-hearted headlock. It was 'punishment' for Nagakura intruding upon Harada's performance with his stomach painted in 'banquet mode'.

Smiling at his friends' antics, he glanced over as he saw Inoue Genzaburou lean slightly towards him, whispering, “Shouldn't the girls be back yet?”

He was about to reply with an adage of patience when he noted that indeed, the three women should have already been back with the drinks and food. The last set of three women from their room had returned only after about five minutes of absence, with trays full of sake and food – this new set of three women had already taken at least fifteen minutes.

He gave a slight nod of his head, saying, “I'll check.” Leaning over to the other side, he gave a sunny smile to the woman attending to one of Serizawa's men, politely asking, “Pardon me, but where are the guest outhouses located?”

The woman twittered in laughter before whispering back to him, “Please go down the stairs, past the first hall then turn right into the second and go all the way down. They are located near the back part of the first garden.”

“Thank you,” he said, picking up his sword and got up, knowing that he had attracted the attention of everyone else in the room with the movement. Fortunately, having excused himself to the outhouses a few times before, during their time in the flower houses of Edo's Yoshiwara district, it was Nagakura who merely said, “Come back quick this time, Okita, or you're going to miss Sano's grand finale again!”

“I will,” he answered, grinning as he turned and left, ignoring the puzzled looks that others not of Kondou's group, were shooting him. Someone would inform the uninformed that he was just merely taking a trip to the outhouses, but he would be using the opportunity to check upon the women. Hopefully, they had not been coerced into serving another group in the den. He'd hate to see Toudou and Harada, both of them shameless flirts, be quite sad if their attendants did not return when the performance was done.

In the empty halls of the flower house that was occasionally filled with attendants flitting to an from other guest rooms, he took a quick lap around the area, listening to any signs of muffled voices that could belong to the women who had been serving Serizawa and the others. Only the sounds of drunken laughter were heard and eventually, he found himself descending the stairs to the first floor. It was definitely quieter here, though the quiet was punctuated by the pitter-patter of rushing feet on the floor, with attendants carrying trays and other items back and forth from the kitchens.

Slipping towards the back area of the flower house, the noise started to increase in volume, as sequestered patrons on the first floor were entertained far away from the entrance. Smoke and perfume floated in the air, as Okita coughed slightly to clear his throat and chest, but still, he did not hear the women. He stopped when a partition suddenly slid open with a loud _clack_ and out spilled three women and a few men.

His initial step to the side to avoid getting entangled with them was half-way halted as he heard one of the women exclaim, “I sincerely apologize, but we three have our own party to attend to! We just cannot stay!”

He blinked in surprise, recognizing the voice, for it belonged to Azami, and stepped out into the middle of the hall. The three women, who looked like they had been coerced into attending the rowdy men in this particular entertainment room, noticed him and quickly ran past him, stopping down the hall as he became the wall that separated them from the drunk men. Putting his hands up in a placating motion, noting at just how incensed and angry the first man had become with his interference.

“Get out of the way!” the man slurred, swiping an arm down as if it were a sword, as Okita took a step back. “We're going to fuck those women senseless!”

“I am sure this is only a misunderstanding,” he said in as polite of a tone as possible, trying to avoid a conflict, even though the man's words greatly angered him. Clearly the women behind him had not given the rowdy men consent to do anything physical and short of drawing his sword within the small space, which he was not going to do unless he really had to, he would try to stop them.

Another of the drunk men swore at him, calling him a litany of derisive names. He narrowed his eyes as he slid into a defensive stance, his hand not quite hovering over the scabbard of his sword. None of the drunkards had challenged him yet, but he was close to loosing his patience and temper at them. The insults were already enough for him to justify killing the men, but to start a blood bath when ill-will was already doused over the Roshigumi and their actions would be rash.

“Draw your sword, coward,” the first man said, swaying a bit as Okita saw him plant his feet firmly on the floor, drawing his wakizashi. “Filth as effeminate-looking as you shouldn't even be drinking here! Get out of my way and go back to those man-whores if you can't even strike me down!”

That was the final straw that broke through his barely-held calm. Furious, he gritted his teeth as he swiftly drew out his sword and held it steady in front of him. However, neither he nor his opponent got a chance to even begin their fight as a thunderous voice from behind Okita bellowed, “Go back to that hell hole you call your clan's lands, maggots!”

Okita turned slightly from where he was, looking up to see the towering form of Serizawa glaring not only at him, but also at the drunk men. Not a word was said, but silence did envelope everything on the first floor as curious people opened the partitions to their entertainment rooms and peeked out, wondering what was going on. The enraged expression that blanketed Serizawa was unlike that of Hijikata's usual calmly furious expression that he remembered seeing many times before, and he couldn't help but falter slightly. Right now, he was a guest of Serizawa and he had no business engaging in a fight with other patrons.

With Serizawa glowering at the men for another minute longer, the man who had drawn his wakizashi sheathed it before scurrying away with the others back into their room. As soon as the door snapped shut, Okita sheathed his own sword and immediately turned and bowed. “I apologize for my behavior, Serizawa-san.”

The only reply he got for his apology was the sound of the tall man turning away with a dismissive look on his face as Okita straightened himself and caught the eyes of the three women who gave him grateful looks before following Serizawa back up to their room. He stood in the empty hall, with all other patrons who had been curiously watching now back in their own entertainment rooms, for a moment longer. He couldn't help but strangely feel that he had been in the wrong to apologize to Serizawa for his supposed breach of etiquette.

Shaking his head slightly, he put his thoughts to the side; there would be plenty of time later to think about what had happened. For now, he would try to understand the Roshigumi's most influential member in order to help Kondou, Hijikata, and Yamanami integrate their group better with Serizawa's group.

A man had to be blind to have not seen that Kondou was still suffering the consequences of his accidental forgetfulness of booking enough quarters for the group during their journey to Kyoto. By extension anyone associated with Kondou's group had also suffered some of the perceived snubs, especially when it came to patrols around the city. Okita was determined to get Kondou and the others of the dojo back into the good graces of Serizawa. The people of Kyoto needed protection from the rebels, and he knew that as much of a rough start the Roshigumi had had in the past week, changes could be made.

* * *

“Kondou-san, Hijikata-san, Yamanami-san,” a voice, chattering slightly from the cold, spoke up from beyond the partition. “There's a man here to see you.”

Hijikata frowned slightly as he heard Kondou say, “Show him in.” The presence standing outside was familiar, but he thought that that particular person had permanently returned to his home region.

The partition opened, and sure enough, Saitou Hajime stepped in. As the partition closed, it was Kondou who welcomed the swordsman first, saying, “Welcome, Saitou-san! It's good to see you again.”

There was a faint upward twitch of the young swordsman's lips as he sat down, placing his swords and small pack to the side before giving a formal bow towards the three of them. When Saitou righted himself, he said, “When I heard from officials in my home province about what you, Kondou-san, and the others were doing in Kyoto, I asked them permission to join. Naturally, they were not keen on letting me go, but my sensei intervened and sent me off. I humbly ask you to accept me into your ranks.”

“You are most welcome to join us, Saitou-san,” Kondou answered.

Hijikata could not help but smirk slightly, seeing Saitou's eagerness to serve justice behind the seemingly indifferent eyes. As Kondou and Yamanami continued to ask the former guest student of the dojo questions as to what had been going on in his region of the country, Hijikata could not help but be glad that Saitou had chosen to arrive and join at this particular time. Had Saitou arrived earlier, then none of the three would have been at the residence to even greet him, for he, Kondou, and Yamanami had been out in the midst of a patrol around a section of the city. Traditionalists were quite strong in the Roshigumi, and anyone else in group not associated with Kondou's dojo would have turned Saitou away for being a left-handed swordsman.

Now though, with the moon already a quarter the way up in the sky and the falling snow halted to make way for clear skies, their current living quarters was emptier than usual. It had been Yamazaki Ayumu, who had taken the position of being their primary cook, who had told the three of them that most of the people not on patrol tonight had been invited by Serizawa to go have drinks.

He had thinned his lips in anger over the news, for it still greatly irritated him with what had happened between Serizawa and the civilians only a day ago. Not even an apology or monetary compensation had been given to the civilians who had survived Serizawa's wrath. Both he and Yamanami had scrounged up only a fraction of the amount that he personally felt was owed to the civilians. Right now, Yamazaki Susumu, who became the Roshigumi's primary shinobi on the recommendation of his sister, was secretly placing the small money pouches in all of the civilians' living quarters.

He knew that a verbal apology from Serizawa would be the only way to completely smooth out the ire and bad feelings, but the tall man was much too proud to do such a thing. As much as Hijikata wanted to confront Serizawa, the Roshigumi was still much too new in Kyoto and did not even have enough influence to enforce territorial patrol lines. Aizu had not even officially sanctioned them for the job of patrolling, and had given them vague directions to patrol from their current location in Mibu Village to all the way past Sanjo-machi and into the Gion district.

Unfortunately, those areas were also in the supposed territory of other groups that operated in a similar manner as the Roshigumi, and even tonight, Yamanami, Kondou, and him had gotten into a rather heated argument with another patrol group. It didn't help that other patrol groups had heard of what had happened in the past week, and they had been driven from the patrol and back to Mibu Village.

It was not how Hijikata had envisioned the Roshigumi's arrival and assumption of peacekeeping duties in Kyoto to start at all. Kondou, being the most patient of the three of them, had said that he would attempt to talk to Serizawa tomorrow about how to go about for the Roshigumi to repair their already marred reputation. Hijikata just hoped that Serizawa would have at least a small sliver of patience to listen to Kondou.

 

~*~*~*~

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 9.1**

 

Snow still covered the ground except for the main areas where members of the Roshigumi traveled through quite often, but the crisp, cold air invigorated Saitou as he breathed in deeply. Kyoto, the heart of the country, the place where unrest from the south had to be stopped, lest it spread to the north. It was here that he would make his mark in the world, to make as large of an impact as he could – not only for the honor, but for keeping and showing that the foreign-bound influence of evil had no place among the ordinary people. It would be in Kyoto that he would be able to slay evil instantly and with great prejudice.

He opened his eyes as he heard footsteps approach and a moment later saw two men, one familiar-looking the other not, turn the corner. “Ah, Saitou-san!” he heard Okita exclaim with a wide smile on his face while the person Okita was walking next to ran a critical eye over him.

Unruffled by the critical gaze, he merely nodded in greeting as the two stopped before him, with Okita saying, “I had heard that you have joined us.” The younger man turn slightly towards the tall man, saying, “Please, allow me to introduce you, Serizawa-san, to one of Kondou-san's best guest students. This is Saitou Hajime.”

“Left-handed?” was all Serizawa said, raising an eyebrow.

“Ambidextrous,” he answered, letting a touch of arrogance color his tone. He had clearly heard doubt drip from Serizawa's voice with that question, but it did not bother him, for all who questioned his ability as a swordsman had learned their lesson. “My sword style allows me to wield my blade in either hand, though the left hand is my dominant one.”

“I see,” Serizawa said but did not say another word as he continued on. Okita gave Saitou a nod in farewell, and Saitou watched them cross the threshold of the compound and disappear into the streets.

Turning back from where he was, he continued slowly walking around the place, taking in all of the buildings and carefully surveying the area. He had not yet been assigned to a patrol group or pair, but knew that it would most likely be with another of Kondou's group. Not that familiarity with people from the dojo was a comfort to him, in fact he disliked it, but he knew and understood that most people looked upon him as an oddity.

“Ah, you must be Saitou Hajime,” a woman's voice said from behind him, bringing him back to the present. Turning around, he casually placed a hand on the hilt of his swords, watching the smiling woman before him approach. While the woman was dressed in a plain, working winter kimono, he could barely feel her presence and knew that she was someone not to take lightly.

“Are you truly a woman or are you still in disguise, shinobi?” he asked. It was only late last night, unable to sleep due to not only the excitement of finally getting to do something about the damnable chaos, that he had heard the soft sounds of someone walking around the compound. He had silently gone out and saw a person dressed as a woman but speaking in hushed tones as a man, talking with vice-commanders Yamanami and Hijikata. Rarely had he ever seen shinobi before, and even though the person he saw was clearly in drag, it was the almost lack of presence he felt from the shinobi that surprised him.

“Ah, you must be referring to my brother, Susumu, then,” the woman answered before bowing slightly towards him. “I am Yamazaki Ayumu, the cook for everyone here.”

“Cook?” he questioned, though he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows at the statement. What little he knew of spies in general was that they poisoned whenever they could. Had the leadership of the Roshigumi gone insane to let a shinobi _cook_ for them?

“I can assure you, Saitou-san,” Yamazaki said, giving him a reassuring smile, “I will not harm neither you nor anyone else. I am only here because I was assigned to this group and my brother is my double.” He saw her nod slightly and turned to see that a black-clad young man was standing behind him – he had not even heard the woman's brother sneak up on him. The young man's head was not covered and Saitou could see the strong family resemblance between the two.

“We are Oniwabanshuu, Saitou-san,” Yamazaki said, as he returned his attention to the woman as she bowed again and left. He turned back to where the young man was and saw no one behind him and only a soft imprint of feet upon snow was the only sign that Yamazaki Ayumu's brother had been there.

However, it was not the fact that the shinobi brother-sister pair had suddenly appeared and disappeared that left him uneasy – it was the fact that Yamazaki had mentioned the organization they belong to: Oniwabanshuu. That particular shinobi organization was famous...or infamous rather, for have close ties to the Shogun. With all the things that he had heard about the Roshigumi while traveling to Kyoto, including the fact that their perceived role in being one of the main peacekeeping groups was in jeopardy, how the hell had they secured such a powerful spy ally?

He let the matter linger in his mind for a few minutes more before dropping it, for now. It didn't matter for now about the 'how', it was the advantage they had. The first thing he needed to know was if other groups patrolling Kyoto also had spies as well-trained as the Roshigumi had, for information was power and with the chaos in Kyoto, Saitou wanted to know everything.

* * *

_Shimabara District, Kyoto. Nightfall..._

 

Smoke from incense and from those puffing away on western cigarettes lingered in the air, adding to atmosphere that was already full of alluring mystique, but in this private room, far away from noisy patrons sat a woman cradling a small child in her arms. The little boy was no more than two years of age, but was still small and very quiet for his age; which was more than enough of a blessing for his mother to keep him hidden away.

Entertaining women who became impregnated by patrons were usually were forced to abort the child, lest they become unemployable for months on end. Since their income was always dependent on the generosity of the matron of the flower house, a pregnant entertainer was not a productive entertainer. Fortunately, the woman had managed to hide her pregnancy under several thick layers of kimono during the winter months over two years ago and had given birth to her son while away from Kyoto, under the guise of entertaining important patrons outside of the city.

The secret organization she worked for had generously provided her with the money, cover, and the necessary witnesses to ensure that they did not lose one of their key operatives inside of the city, and in return, she had repaid them ten-fold, starting with the breakdown of Choshuu and Satsuma politics around the Emperor's court. Now, she had more to play with in adding to the upheaval, for the Shogun and various groups associated with his entourage had spilled into the city.

For the woman known as Seta Yuna, though she still worked at this particular flower house under the guise and name of Azami, Kyoto was going to be the place where one of the organization's current goals would finally be fulfilled with an all-out war between belligerent factions. Their long-ago bid to control the politics governing the country had failed, almost exposing them to the public eye. Now, with foreigners looking to sink their fingers within Japan, this chaos was the only way to ensure that they remained safely anonymous and could continue weaving their way towards higher goals.

“Azami,” a familiar voice called out from the other side of the partition.

“Enter,” she said, as she adjusted her grip on the child in her arms. Her son giggled and said a few nonsensical words as she looked up to see the partition to her private room slide open. The woman who entered looked similar to her, though only in the eyes and nose. Their facial structure were different, for it was her who was the only one out of their family to have inherited the perfect facial beauty that matched their mother.

The partition slid close as Yuna watched her younger sister approach, her squarish jaw set in a grim fashion as she knelt down before her. Even in private such as this, her sister never addressed her by her real name, and she never did either, having taken to calling her sister 'Dog Girl' in as derisive of a tone as possible. It was what others at this flower house called her sister, who was playing the part of one of their most reliable servants. While others at the flower house swayed their hips, gaily laughed with their patrons, showed small amounts of their skin in suggestive manners, and went about their lives shackled to being whores to society's drunk but paying patrons for they were not geisha, Yuna and her sister were not of their class.

Nor were they of the noble class or any class that defined the rigid system the Shogunate had imposed after that decisive battle at Sekigahara, over two hundred years prior. Their organization had existed even before factions had clashed and the great and terrible Oda Nobunaga ascended to power. They existed since the legendary sword style of Hiten Misturugi was gifted to their clan and had been entrusted with one purpose: to ensure that the people of the land were protected.

“We should be thankful that your son is not fussy like other children,” her sister said, as she brought herself up and out of her musings, letting her sister take the child from her. “Oume has requested your presence tonight to help her. Serizawa has returned and has brought a potential protege with him.”

“To be his protege or to be the organization's own?” she asked, as she looked down at her son to see his wide eyes looking back up at her, curious.

“I do not know,” she answered.

Briefly thinning her lips in anger, she returned to normal as she got up and said, “Orders have come in; we are to watch Serizawa and his actions, and if they seem to be compromising the organization's goals, we are to deal with him.”

“I understand, Azami,” her sister replied, “however, I do not have complete mastery of several forms in Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, and therefore, do not think I will be able to kill him if the time comes.”

Opening the chest that was in the corner of the room, she faintly smiled. Though full mastery of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu and the name of 'Hiko Seijuurou' was passed only from one person to another, others, hand-picked by the master, were always taught. It was to prevent the loss of knowledge of the sword style should both master and apprentice inheriting the master's name fail on the succession test. Yuna's sisters and brothers had been selected to train in the style at a young age, while she had not been. However, she had not been sore about not being chosen, for her purpose was greater – she was one of the many operatives within cities all over the country, coordinating efforts on behalf of their secret organization. She had the power to send out people such as her sister to assassinate or influence noblemen, merchants, or even a lowly daikon radish farmer; and it greatly pleased her.

“We'll make do,” she said as she drew out a beautifully patterned kimono and started dressing herself. “Perhaps if Serizawa's protege will be turned...”

“Okita Souji is the man who walks beside Serizawa,” her sister bluntly stated. “Clearly the Serizawa-beast has taken your words to heart and will try to control the Roshigumi and their mission in Kyoto.”

“Ah,” she said, as the long pause that she had found herself in as soon as Okita Souji's name had been said, was resumed with her tying and knotting the layers of her kimono. “Serizawa's presence does explain why there have been so many reports of fear being spread around Mibu village.”

Silence encompassed the room with only the sounds of breathing from the child punctuating the silence as Yuna knelt in front of the mirror and applied the appropriate makeup to herself before ensuring that her artfully arranged hair was still in place. Just as she got up, she heard her sister speak.

“Tell me, Azami. Was it after Okita Souji, whose family we have tried so hard to eradicate, that you named your son after him? Your prior obsession with that family has been noted by the organization. It is also why you were removed from the mission in Edo and sent to Kyoto.”

“He is not the father, if that is what you're asking,” she dismissively said. “I never got _that_ close to the target. My son, Seta Soujirou, is named for the future and for what it will hold. Very soon, I will have to send him away to live with strangers, for if Serizawa keeps his brutish attitude up, the level of violence in this city will no longer be safe enough to raise my son. See to it that your twin sister finds a suitable family for my son to live with until I can retrieve him. If not, perhaps sending him up to our 'dear' brother who proclaims himself to be the thirteenth 'Hiko Seijuurou' would be somewhat palatable.”

“I will, Azami.”

Without a glance back at her sister or son, she left and headed down the hall towards the more lively sections of the flower house. It was at an intersection that she met up with Oume, a lovely-looking woman who had delicate features, clear porcelain skin, and lustrous black hair – the envy of all who worked in not only this flower house but many others. With the beauty Oume commanded, it was very strange to see her still working in a flower house and not a tea house as a geisha of Gion. Many rumors floated around the Shimabara district as to why Oume stayed in Shimabara – one of which the strongest was due to a rivalry she had with a fellow Shimabara flower house woman named Akesato.

While Oume was a whore through and through, Yuna knew that Akesato was not, for reports had filtered back to her that Akesato was actually a shinobi employed by the Choshuu clan. She had let it be, for shinobi from all factions, including the ever-present guardians of Kyoto, the Shogunate-loyal Oniwabanshuu, were starting to converge on the city. Spies only contributed to the chaos being wrought in the city, which in turn, kept the organization she worked for, more hidden. If they had assassins, patrolmen, citizens, spies, and all sorts of people in Kyoto jumping at their own shadows, it enabled her organization to move freely about and gave them room to 'guide' people and information as they saw fit.

Both she and Oume made their way down another set of halls to where their guests were and as they were announced and the partition opened, Oume glided in and she followed at a discreet pace. As expected from the brief report that her sister had given her only a few minutes ago, seated before them were the tall, broad-shouldered, and muscularly imposing Serizawa Kamo, and the willowy lean and deceptively dainty-looking Okita Souji.

Rather than betray any of the negative emotions she felt, she instead, put forward her most demure smile and shyly inclined her head as she followed Oume's lead. Serizawa already seemed enraptured by Oume, and she would do everything in her power and abilities to ensure that the woman kept Serizawa's attention through the night. If Serizawa wanted a protege in Okita Souji, she would make sure that Okita became his protege, but only one who worked to her own advantage.

* * *

The hazy winter moon was already setting in the night skies by the time Okita and Serizawa left the flower house. As the two of them wordlessly walked in the streets, Serizawa's words still rang clear in his mind...

 

“ _Kondou tells me that your skills with a sword are exceptional.”_

_Okita nearly choked on the sip of sake that he had been taking and managed to put the cup down on the tray before coughing to clear his throat. He was flattered, but boasting was something that he did not do, for he was not even remotely comfortable with it. Instead, he said, “I do not know for sure, for I have never had a chance to test it in actual combat before.”_

“ _Oh?” Serizawa asked, as Okita felt the faintest brush of silk against his wrist and glanced over to see Azami, the woman who had served him yesterday, pouring another cup of sake for him. In this brighter light, there was a clear difference between who he thought Azami looked like yesterday, and today. There was a certain raw beauty and allure about the woman serving him that caused him to warmly blush every time he looked at her tonight._

_Quickly returning his attention to Serizawa, he listened as the man continued to say, “I heard that you picked up your first sword at the age of nine and that you successfully defended your sister from thugs who roamed Edo.”_

“ _I did,” he simply stated, but did not elaborate. He was curious as to why Kondou felt it was relevant to impart that sort of information to Serizawa, but knew that there would be time later to ask about it._

“ _Your skills are not being put to effective use here, Okita,” Serizawa stated. “Kondou and the others are only assigning you easy patrol routes. I can see in your eyes that you want to defend Kyoto from the wretched hives of rebels, but I can only convince Kondou, Hijikata, and Yamanami so far.”_

“ _But what of that incident with the civilians?” he asked._

_While he was all for going on tougher patrol routes, he knew that Serizawa did have a point – Hijikata and the others, even though they had been assigned less wanted routes, were not taking as active parts in patrolling the more seedy sections of Kyoto on their routes. Even others of Tonouchi's group had taken to patrolling their own dangerous sections more than the less-dangerous ones. Between all of them, including the addition of Saitou, whom he was glad had shown up to join them, they had the necessary skills to effectively patrol their part of Kyoto. Added to his frustration was the fact that Serizawa had seriously damaged their initial reputation with the civilians._

“ _It was unfortunate, but those who do not respect our authority deserved their punishment,” Serizawa stated. “They were weak and did not have the will to prevent rebels from worming their way into their hearts. Only the strong can resist and only the strong can survive. That is my goal for this city – to have the Roshigumi ensure that the Shogunate has the strength of the people behind him to deal with the foreign incursion and to deal with the rebels trying to influence our Emperor's way of thinking.”_

_Okita placed the sake cup that was half-way up towards his mouth back down as he said, “Then our goals are mutual. I see now why the civilians have had to been punished. There is a great evil festering in this city that must be eradicated.”_

“ _Are you willing to kill, Okita?”_

 _Okita merely blinked as Serizawa regarded him with a sudden soul-piercing look in those hellish eyes of his. There was no change to the man's_ ken-ki _but he could read the intent behind the question. He knew that both he and Serizawa were currently engaged in a game of words, trying to test each others' resolve, strengths, weaknesses, and trying to assess if either was trustworthy. For the sake of ensuring that Kondou, Hijikata, and Yamanami were clear of Serizawa and his bullish ways, he knew that he could say 'yes' and be done with it. However, the problem was, was he going to be able to convince Serizawa of the intent?_

“ _I have killed a man at age nine. I have killed another few at the age of fifteen. To save this city from the rebels that plague it, I am willing to become a demon and kill them all,” he stated after a few moments of silence._

“ _Miburo,” Serizawa said after a moment. “It is what they call us now.”_

“ _It is a name that should be embraced by all of us.”_

“ _It's not, as evidenced by your comrades.”_

_Okita took a sip out of his sake cup, but did not place the cup back down for a refill. Instead, he held the empty cup aloft, carefully looking at it, saying, “This cup is filled endlessly with alcohol and continuously washed, yet it never looks like it is chipped by the rowdy hands that sometime holds it. I have only been in this city for a week, but it is what Kyoto feels like to me. Those rowdy hands are similar to those who cause unrest and it is like those men on the ground floor yesterday, whom should be taught a lesson.”_

“ _Then there is a patrol route that we will travel on tonight before returning to Mibu village. There have been reports not from the shinobi employed with us, but from my contacts in within the Aizu faction, of several individuals who have been harassing a ramen-stand vendor.”_

_He placed the sake cup down and merely gave a silent but curt nod towards Serizawa. Whatever would happened tonight, he went into it with eyes wide open..._

 

“You were warned never to step foot here again, Serizawa-san,” a dangerous voice spoke up, snapping Okita out of his uncharacteristic musing.

“I believe that it is I, who had warned you, Ogawa,” he heard Serizawa challenge.

He felt the presence of other men surrounding both he and Serizawa from behind and turned slightly, putting his hand on the scabbard of his sword, ready to angle it for a quick draw. Four men, dressed in the colors of the Mimiwarigumi, along with the two in front of them, had surrounded them. All six of them exuded a hostility that was not entirely directed at Serizawa.

Neither he nor Serizawa had official uniforms, but clearly, these men thought that this section of Kyoto was theirs to patrol If these were the men harassing the ramen-stand vendor that Serizawa had been talking about earlier in the evening, then he could see that they were rather intimidating. All six men were quite tall, with strands of their hair sticking out whichever way in the pale lantern lights, giving them a unkempt, wild look.

He heard Serizawa scuff his straw sandals on the dirt road, and could feel the beastly man's _ken-ki_ grow. He kept his own swordsman spirit level and low, for the six men before them were just itching for a fight, judging from the way they held themselves and the impatience he could feel rolling off of them. Let them underestimate him, let them think of Serizawa as the bigger threat – it would be their undoing.

~~~

“These are the areas around the city that we've been asked to patrol.”

Saitou studied the map with a keen interest as Hijikata traced a finger around the borders of the area. It was a rather large area, but with the amount of people they had in the Roshigumi, it gave small groups a lot of room to walk around without bumping into others. However, a quarter of that area belong to Mibu village, which was just open farmland and very few houses. He was please, though, to see that they were covering populated areas within the city and more than a few popular inns and not just the rundown outskirts that would definitely not house rebels.

“Which sections need more coverage?” he asked.

“These inns near the Gion district and Sanjomachi have always had a lot of people around,” Hijikata answered. “However, it is the more populated part in this area which has the most inns. For the past few days, there have been minor incidents between some vendors and gawking tourists. Nothing as big as what happened--”

Saitou suddenly stilled himself as he felt a sharp presence land on the walkway, but it was the youthful voice of the shinobi, Yamazaki Susumu, who said, “There is an ongoing incident, _fukuchou_.”

“Report, Yamazaki,” Hijikata curtly stated as Saitou scooted over to the side, just as the partition to Hijikata's room slid open.

“There is a Mimiwarigumi patrol group disputing territorial lines near the intersection of Shimachi and Sanjomachi, and they have encountered Serizawa- _kyokuchou_ and Okita-sensei.”

The clatter of Hijikata's knees hitting the small low table that held the spread map of Kyoto as the man suddenly stood up at the news was the only answered given as the vice-commander said, “Get Kondou and his patrol group and have them meet us at the intersection. They're somewhere along Gojou-dori.”

“Yes, sir,” the shinobi replied and promptly left.

Saitou had also stood as the orders had been given, his daisho pair secured at the right side of his waist as soon as the shinobi left. Though he saw Hijikata calmly stroll out of the room, pausing only to put on his sandals and secure his swords at his side, ensuring that the bitingly cold air would not make the blades stick to their scabbards, he could see that the vice-commander was tense. It was with good reason too as he followed him and together the two of them ran as quick as they could out of the compound towards where the incident was happening.

The Mimiwarigumi were officially sanctioned by the Shogunate and had better sponsorship for their bid to patrol Kyoto. Saitou knew that though a hatamoto had been assigned to oversee the Roshigumi, even Aizu, their main sponsor was not too keen on securing as strong of a sponsorship towards them. It was all due to the hushed whispers of what happened before Saitou had arrived, and the biggest of the incidents so far involved Serizawa. For Serizawa to even provoke a negative response with the Mimiwarigumi – Saitou knew that tangling with Mimiwarigumi when the Roshigumi had been here only a week, would be detrimental to their overall mission.

Even though there was a cold north wind blowing through the city, Saitou could smell blood in the air even before they arrived. Even with the few minutes that he and Hijikata had taken just to get here, it was much too late to prevent the utter carnage that greeted them as soon as they cleared the narrow alleyways and arrived at the intersection of the streets.

His sword was already half-way out of his scabbard when he realized that it was too late and that they needed not even to defend themselves. He resheathed his sword as he looked around. Strewn about the intersection were bodies, covered in heavy amounts of blood. Even with lanterns barely illuminating the scene, along with the glittering stars now hidden behind thick clouds, and the heavy scent of blood hanging around the air, he could tell that it had really been a one-sided fight.

Another man would have pitied the dead Mimiwarigumi members, but he had no such thoughts crossing his mind. Instead, he was quite impressed at just how destructive Serizawa and Okita had been. There was barely any blood upon the two men, who were standing in the middle of the bodies, with demonic looks in their eyes as they too, surveyed the scene.

“What the hell happened?” Hijikata demanded.

“These dogs tried to insult my honor,” Serizawa simply answered as both the giant of a man and Okita gave flicks of their blades to get as much of the blood off. Saitou stepped in and handed both of them folded cloth to wipe the rest off. There was a heavy scent of alcohol from Serizawa, but from Okita, there was barely a distinguishable scent. Though he could only make a quick judgment based on his previous encounter with Serizawa and from what he knew of Okita, he could not help but wonder if Serizawa's statement was true. He knew that Okita had a rational head about him, even if he had gotten completely drunk a few years ago when he, Saitou, had been visiting Kondou's dojo as a guest student.

“Tried?” Hijikata questioned, disbelief lacing his tone as the two sheathed their swords.

“Challenging us was their mistake, Hijikata-san,” Okita spoke up, his tone completely devoid of warmth and could freeze the blood of lesser men. “These men were also harassing a night time food vendor.”

“Did you see it?”

Saitou watched with calculating eyes as Hijikata challenged the words of the younger man, while keeping his eyes locked on Serizawa. While he was under the impression that Hijikata and Okita got along and were possibly even friends, something about Serizawa seemed to make Hijikata quite irritated. Now with what seemed like Okita _defending_ Serizawa and the action they had taken tonight that could have potential political ramifications, Hijikata looked positively infuriated.

“Serizawa saw it happen before, and I believe his words, Hijikata-san,” Okita stated. “This section is under our jurisdiction, thus the Mimiwarigumi actions tonight were done in provocation towards us.”

“I would highly suggest that both Okita and Saitou remain here and clean up the bodies,” Serizawa said before Hijikata could get a word out. “Hijikata, both you and I will return to the compound and start drafting letters to both the Mimiwarigumi and to Aizu about what has happened tonight.”

Saitou glanced over to see that while Hijikata wanted to protest, frustration and the determination not to further delve into what had happened here, for he could feel the tension grow thicker, the vice-commander stayed silent. Even though he was not privy to all of the politics going on in his home domain, for he was also not quite interested, he knew enough to see the signs that Hijikata clearly did not like Serizawa as their leader. However, Hijikata was all but powerless, for Saitou had heard from Kondou when he had first arrived that most of their assignments and blessings to travel down to Kyoto had been secured by Serizawa. Almost everyone in the Roshigumi was indebted to Serizawa for everything that he had done for them so far.

He knew that in this den of demons, he would have to watch all of them carefully, especially Serizawa and Hijikata – but no one more closer than Okita. The man he had challenged when he was a guest student of Kondou's dojo was still there, having grown physically stronger just by seeing the familiar sword work on the bodies, as was the demon within him, but mentally... Saitou knew a challenge when he saw one, and this time, Okita had not directed it at him, but subtly at Serizawa – Okita was not blindly following Serizawa along this soul-annihilating path, the man was willing walking into it. While Saitou himself was also not one to surrender, he only had one question that he wanted to ask his comrade: why?

* * *

_Mid-morning... far away from the chaos..._

 

The rather loud crunch of footsteps on pristine snow caused Kenshin to turn his head slightly from where he was staring down into a valley. A group of ratty-looking people carrying a variety of weapons strode past him, chattering quite loudly. They completely ignored him and instead, were focused on their own selves. From the looks and swaggering walk they had adopted, he surmised that the men were headed down into the valley. As soon as the group passed him, he followed discreetly behind them.

He could smell the burning firewood and heavenly scent of warm food, and after weeks of walking, sustaining himself on cold mountain stream water and bits of edible roots and tree bark, he was famished. Perhaps with the rowdy group's attention, he could slip in and go get some warm food before people noticed.

Weeks since he had made the decision to leave his master; weeks since he had traveled towards the south, originally headed towards Kyoto, but found himself lost in unfamiliar areas in the mountains. He had been lost in the mountains for days, since the clouds all but covered the stars. He didn't give up though, and had finally stumbled upon a main road only two days ago. After some villagers had given him directions, he realized that his journey had carried him further south than he had intended. Thus, it had taken him two days to get here and stumble upon this rather large and organized camp in the valley.

Squaring his senses, he brought himself back into the present as the slope of the mountain curved out into flat plains and the rowdy group in front of him. As soon as he could, he ducked behind tents and hastily erected wooden structures, letting his sense of smell guide him. It was near the far side of the camp that he finally found where the food was.

There was a small line, and so without further hesitation, he straightened himself and strode in, trying to look as nonchalant as possible. Unfortunately, the man who he stood behind turned and gave him a knowing nod. “Hungry kid?” the man asked.

Kenshin remained silent, hoping that if he didn't answer, the man would think that he was already a member of this camp and settled for a look that was half-way between a glare and annoyance.

“Kid, you're not fooling anyone,” the man continued as the queue moved forward. “Don't worry. There's enough food for everyone and no one's going to kick you out just for eating something.” The man made to pat him on the head, but Kenshin ducked out at the last minute and gave the stranger an annoyed look. “I'm Iizuka, by the way,” the man said as he put his hand down. “This here is what one of the guys who seem to be higher up in the chain say: the Kiheitai.”

“Kiheitai?” he asked, his curiosity piqued.

“Yeah,” Iizuka said. “Takasugi Shinsaku of the Choshuu leads it. Supposedly, once we get things organized here, the force will be going to Kyoto to help the clan petition the Emperor and Shogun in favor of exclusion.”

Kenshin stayed silent, with his blinks the only sign that he was confused at what was just said. While rumors and news had filtered through to the mountain, down below, information was even more chaotic. There were so many rumors of unrest and of people suffering that he did not know what was true and what was not true. However, the only constant that had been in everything he had heard was that Kyoto was the center of it all.

It was now their turn at the serving station, and he could feel the glower of the cook serving the meal being cast upon him. However, Iizuka merely shrugged the glare off as soon as two bowls were filled with something that _slopped_ , the man handed him the bigger portion. Immensely grateful, Kenshin managed to say “thank you” to Iizuka before digging into the food.

He was barely aware that the older man had guided him away as he wolfed down the delicious meal and in less than a few minutes, he finished his portion. Though his stomach still felt slightly empty, it was warm enough that he didn't complain or ask for seconds. He could feel Iizuka's inquisitive eyes upon him but merely set the bowl down on a table. With the clouds still hanging in the air, covering sunlight and the night sky, he supposed that it would not hurt to stay with the camp until they headed for Kyoto. It would be better than him trying to make his own way again and getting lost.

As if reading his thoughts, Iizuka suddenly said, “Looking to stay a while, kid?”

Kenshin shrugged, and settled for adjusting his sword at his waist. Thankfully, his master had not demanded the sword back before he had left. While his master had taught him to cook, he had not taught him how to hunt animals, though he had carefully watched his master skin rabbits and other small creatures. Wolves that roamed the forest always had a sense to never approach the hut where he and his master had lived, and thus, he had never killed a predator before. He had been extremely lucky to not even encounter one when he was getting lost for the past weeks.

“They accept anyone of any rank from all walks of life, kid,” Iizuka said. “You're short and you look way too young to be joining up with us, but you look like you know how to carry a sword. How old are you, kid?”

“Fourteen,” he answered.

“All right,” Iizuka answered, slurping the rest of the food that was in his bowl as if it were straight up miso soup. Placing the bowl next to where Kenshin's own bowl was, he saw the man gesture for him to follow and together, they left the kitchens area. “I dunno if Takasugi will accept you into the Kiheitai, since you're not even fifteen and a man yet, but since this is a training ground, maybe if you got some skills, he'll make an exception.”

He remained silent and soon, they got to an open field area where there were many people gathered. He jumped slightly to see over the taller people and glimpsed of an area where there were poles buried into the ground. Thick rope was twined around the poles in two areas, indicating a faux vital area that one should hit. Beyond the poles were two people sitting in chairs, examining what Kenshin realized to be testing grounds for the mettle and abilities of recruits in this camp.

“Class and rank have no meaning here!” a voice bellowed out loud over the murmurs of the crowd. “All we ask for is heart and strength! If we share those, then we are all comrades. That is the Kiheitai!”

Looking up, he saw a thin, sinewy-looking man with beady eyes and a strange grin on his face, casually holding a bokken in one hand. Standing to the right of the skinny man was a kinder-looking, but proud and upright man dressed in immaculate clothes. It looked like the two were observing today's session.

“The man on the left is Takasugi Shinsaku, leader of this motley group,” Iizuka said from beside him. “The one on the right is Katsura Kogoro, our clan's representative in Kyoto.”

However, before Kenshin could even acknowledge the information, he was suddenly shoved forward and through the crowd. Stumbling slightly, he glanced back and gave an annoyed look at Iizuka who merely waved at him. His push into the crowd had generated some interest as suddenly, the crowd parted, allowing him clear access to the two training poles.

Murmurs rose in volume as he walked past. “Ha!” a man barked as he readied his sword, walking forward. It would be simple to just show something small, something that would not be as impressive as all of his other abilities – something enough to convince those judging him to allow him to stay until he got his bearings again.

“A kid carrying a sword like a man,” another man said. “All right, show us something. Whatever you can do.”

“If you split it in two, I'll give you one ryo!”

Kenshin paused and glanced over at the bald-headed man who had issued that challenge. One ryo was a lot of money, and perhaps when the group finally did go to Kyoto, he would need it to break off and stay on his own. It wouldn't hurt to start collecting money for his future journey.

Silence fell upon the crowd as he stopped in front of the left pole. From what he could see, there were at least five layers of thick rope wrapped tightly around the pole, which was a little thicker than the upper arm of his master. He reminded himself that he just needed to something small, nothing fancy, but enough so that his sword would be able to cut through it. Perhaps his favorite move would do the trick...

Pausing for only a moment after he crouched, his left thumb flicked out the blade and not a second later, his right hand clamped down on the hilt. Stepping into the draw, his blade swept out in an arc, through the rope and pole, but even before the force of the blade's trajectory completely lifted the cut half of the ensemble, he quickly stepped to the right and arced his body in a clockwise motion. His scabbard came flying out and smashed into the rope, before the force of the swing, augmented by his body moment, caused not only it to disintegrate, but also the wooden pole to shatter.

Holding himself still as the remains of the practice structure fell to the snowy ground, he whispered, “Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu – Soryousen.”

Exhaling, he straightened himself, as he calmly reseated his scabbard into the himo of his hakama before sheathing his sword. Turning towards the man who had made the bet, he held out a hand, saying, “One ryo.”

The man merely stared at him and slowly he realized that _everyone_ around him was staring at him with dumbfounded looks on their faces. Confused, he looked around, wondering why they were doing that. Even Iizuka had his mouth agape. Were not all of these men, no matter what rank or place they were in skilled in the sword or other weaponry they carried? Did they not have the same capabilities as he had to cut down a thick training pole?

“You,” a half-shaky voice shattered the silence as he turned and saw the two people, who had been sitting on the hill above the field, approach. It had been the kind-looking man who had said that word. “Who are you?”

“Himura Kenshin,” he answered, bowing slightly for it seemed the most appropriate thing to do.

“Takasugi,” the man said, turning slightly towards the lanky taller one, “do you have a place here where Himura-kun and I can talk in private?”

“Sure,” Takasugi answered, gesturing for both the man and for Kenshin to follow him. However, Kenshin did not miss the unsettling grin that briefly graced Takasugi's face before the man turned and walked away. He didn't know what Katsura Kogoro of the Choshuu clan wanted, but his instincts were telling him that Katsura was going to be the surest way for him to get to Kyoto. If he followed Katsura, he would be able to help stop the oppression and suffering of the people.

 

~*~*~*~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> With regards to Saitou: apologies in advance if Saitou seems a little OOC... I admit, I was re-watching a few episodes of both Ryomaden (I know Saitou isn't in Ryomaden, but it's still fun to watch Episodes 23, 24, 25, and 26) and Hakuoki to draw some more inspiration for Part 9 and Part 10. I also happened to re-read the "Remembrance" chapters in Rurouni Kenshin around the same time...so I might've gotten some wires crossed.
> 
> With regards to Okita: yes, his descent (and association with Serizawa) into what he is in PMK is eerily similar to Seta Soujirou - it was deliberately written that way and will possibly be addressed in the sequel story to "Remnants".
> 
> With regards to Kenshin: writing him as an innocent teenager with nary a common know-how on how the world works in that era of time was refreshing, to say the least. I pulled a part of his scene from "Remembrance", though in reality, I was hoping to pull it from the OAV instead (but I also upped the timeline to be late winter instead of late spring rains).


End file.
